I be all alone
by Priee
Summary: It all starts near the end of the Ib all alone ending. Garry's dead, Mary's portrait was burned, and Ib is about to cross into the portrait and make it home. But what if a familiar face makes Ib hesitate at going home? In the world where anything is possible will Ib still get to leave with her friend and receive her happy ending? Garry/Ib R&R NOT ONESHOT WILL CONTINUE! T to be safe
1. Chapter 1: Together Forever

**A/N:**

**Yeah first story! (~insert party music here~)**

**So, My friend introduced me to this game and I can't stop obssesing over it. To curb my craziness, I decided to write fanfiction!**

**SO first chapter here we go! Please R&R, if you like it please Review! Reviews will drive me to update fast...**

**Oh yeah before I forget: I OWN NOTHING (except the turkey sandwich in the fridge that I do not own) **

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Chapter 1. Together Forever

"Ib, come with me."

I saw Garry's gentle yet familiar hand beckon towards me. As much as I want to believe it is true, I still remember the half dead Garry left on the floor of the toybox.

"Ib, no thats not the exit," He chuckles with a sound that I knew so well, " I found the exit over there in there, it's not in here at all silly!"

Memories flow rapidly through my mind. There's only a tiny chance that the Garry standing in front of me is the one I long for, and not an illusion of this god-forsaking maze. I took another glance at Garry's outstretched hand, almost drawing me to him with his warmth. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath and then walked slowly towards him.

"That's it Ib, come on! Let's get out of here." Garry said.

The moment our hands touched, I knew something was wrong. The warm hand that gave off a warm lemon fragrance was replaced by a ice cold stone mold. Before I had a chance to process these new discoveries, the stone hand encased my hand tightly in it's, and dragged me into the next room. As much as I scream and tried to pull away, he only grasped tighter. Then all of the sudden, I felt the hold loosen and then release. Garry faced me staring right into my eyes. Instead of pupils in his lavender eyes, all I saw was blank. We stayed standing there, looking at each other.

"Bad Ib. Bad, bad, bad!" Mary's voice echoed through Garry's mouth. "You said we were gonna leave this place together Ib, you promised!"

I shivered though my dress.

"But it's okay Ib, best friends forgive each other." Mary's voice continued, "we can still be here, together forever..."

I screamed at the top of my lungs. " No!"

"Together forever， together for…" the voice continued to echo.

Then, the Garry I knew melted right in front of my eyes. His sleek light blue hair fell out in patches and revealed a bald white dome, his skin and features melted off his body like hot wax, and his tattered old blue coat tore off revealing a headless mannequin combined with a bodiless head on top of its neck.

"Together forever." the head whispered one more time before collapsing on the floor motionless.

I took off sprinting back the way the fake Garry lead me. I run to the room with the painting "Fabricated World", but when I got there, it was too late, the painting was ruined. There were long slash marks on the paper. Also with the words "Ib and Mary best friends forever" painted on with red paint.

Seeing my only way out destroyed I ran again. I ran as fast as I could out of the pink house. Hot, yet sweet tears pushed up my eyes and eventually down my cheeks but I had intension of wiping them away. I didn't know where I was going, but I still ran. I ran to the artificial sunbeam next to the ice room because it was the place where Gary and I made a promise to eat macaroons after we get out of this mess. Mary is a messed up girl, but she is right about one thing: it's bad to break a promise. I gathered up my courage and knew what I had to do next, and I sprinted off again.

Garry lies motionless on the floor of the toybox. He looked so peaceful slumbering there like he was just taking an afternoon nap, but I knew better, as much as I wanted to believe that it were true.

"Garry," I whispered softly through his ears.

And of course, there was no response.

I didn't care.

"Garry, you jerk! You promised to take me out for macaroons! You promised."

Still no response.

I got up and trudged upstairs, to the room where Gary's forgotten rose lied there on the floor. But as I got a closer look, I realized that the last petal was clinging to the stem by a tiny strand. Hope began to arise in me. I then delicately picked up the last of Garry's life source and ran out of the toybox. I searched the entire land looking for a vase full of water, and hope. But I knew better than to put the flower in the lake, after having my own weakened by the rancid water. After what seemed like an eternity, I accepted that there was no good water left in all of crayon land. I hopes were dashed just as fast as it came. Then, I took the dying blue rose in my hand and walked back to where I left Garry.

"I'm sorry Garry, I can't do it." I whimpered.

Then everything came crashing down on me: getting trapped in this treacherous place, losing my parents, getting chased by scary looking monsters, and worst of all, losing the only person I had. I couldn't control it, a thin line of tears turned into a gigantic waterfall crashing down on the floor. I cried about Garry, I cried about my parents, and I even cried about Mary. There was an endless list of things that I cried about and I didn't even try to control myself.

But as my tears dripped onto the fallen rose, it became enclosed in a silvering blue light. The blue petals creeped from the stem and formed a small bud, then blossomed into full bloom and revealed a perfect blue rose with exactly ten shiny blue petals.

I didn't realize what was happening as I continue crying my eyes red. Then I felt a familiar hand cupping my chin.

"Ib's not pretty anymore when she cries, her eyes are red and swollen like two tomatoes!" a weak voice laughs.

The familiar chuckle hurts my heart.

I open eyes and gasp, becoming awestruck and the sight of Garry, laughing and alive. I immediately jump into an embrace in his arms.

"Woah! Ib! I missed you too!" He smiled and hugged me back tightly.

"I thought you were gone." I mumbled though his shirt, "I thought you weren't coming back."

"But I'm here aren't I." replied Garry, "And I promise, from here on out, I'll always be here, forever."

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**A/N:**

**MWAHAHAHA! Mary is back! Garry is alive! (~fangirls crowd and cheer my name~) Yes, your welcome! I've always thought what would've happened if Garry never died cause the first time I played this, I got the Forgotten Portrait ending which made me cry for weeks! I will post another chapter tomarrow and if I get more reviews/follows/favs I upgrade into super awesome speedy writer mode and upgrade at the speed of light!**

**Yeah so.**

**R&R?**

**Please?**

**My monkey will dance for you..**

**Dance monkey Dance!~**

**~April**


	2. Chapter 2: Finding Mary

**A/N:**

**Amazing people that reviewed and favorited! It really boosts my self esteem as a writer. (~happy dance I'm so happy that I decided to post another chapter today!**

**BTW: I don't own Ib or the characters (yet...)**

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Chapter 2. Finding Mary

"So, our only exit is destroyed, Mary is back from the dead, and we are stuck here forever?" Garry concluded.

I sat in his lap as I told him everything that happened after Garry "woke up".

I nodded.

"How is she still alive? I thought you said that you saw her burn into ashes Ib." Garry questioned.

I sat there wondering that question too. Even though Garry was now back with me again, I still felt very scared. Behind my mask of indifference lies a quivering little girl that wanted to go home. Garry must have seen the tears starting to from in my eyes because he put his warm arms around me and pulled me close.

"Don't cry Ib. I know it seems scary, but I know you are very brave when you want to be. Why, remember when we first met?" Garry asked with an amused smile, "I was so scared by the painting that spit out blue goo that I fell to the floor."

Reminiscing about that experience made me laugh. I rubbed my eyes and snuggled deeper into Garry's arms. We stayed like that for a long time.

"Awww isn't that sweet." Mary's voiced seemed to echo from the hallway.

"No hug for your best friend Ib? The voice teased.

I felt Garry tense ; he took his arms off of me and stood up.

"Mary if you're still alive then show yourself!" He shouted, "Enough of these games!"

"Oh, but Gary, I'm not alive am I, at least not right now." Mary's eerie voiced answered. "Ib killed me, but she's my best friend so I forgive her!"

"How are you here?" I asked the hallway.

"Oh naive Ib, you can't kill me with a small fire, or at least not completely kill me." Mary's voice echoed with a singsong voice. "I hadn't had this much fun for such a long time! Let's play a game!"

"We would do no such thing!" Garry defended.

"Pfff, what a killjoy. Let's ignore him, would you play my game Ib? If you don't I won't promise that you can save Garry again the next time. Hahaha" The cold voice laughed.

I saw Garry wince at the corner of my eye. As much as I hated Mary and her manipulative tricks, I couldn't let Garry die again.

"I'll play." I answered softly.

"Yay, goodie! Ib let's play hide and seek." Mary said with an excited tone. "I'm hiding, can you find me?"

I stood up and looked around. Garry grasped my hands.

"You're not seriously considering playing along with this are you Ib?" Garry looked at me skeptically.

"I can't lose you again." I answered.

"You won't." he answered firmly.

After a moment of silence, I stared determinedly at Garry.

"Okay, come on let's find this little troublesome kid." Garry grouched.

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**A/N:**

**Sorry if its a little short. When I write, I usually stop when it feels like a stopping point in the story for me. But the next chapters are longer, trust me..(because I already wrote them) **

**Again, thank you people that fav/follow/reviewed my story. It makes me so happy when I see that someone cares about what happened next.**

**Thank you so much!**

**~April**


	3. Chapter 3: Searching for Answers

**A/N:**

**Thank you people who reviewed. You thoughts me so much to me, so don't be afraid to criticize me. It'll make me a better writer.**

**Thank you krilkanalo for keeping up with me as I update. I'll try to write less dialouge, but it's hard to build up the Garry/Ib relationship if I don't...**

**Thank you Autumn for the heads up. There's going to be other people's point of view from this point on, but I'll still do most in Ib's POV. Even though she's just a little kid, she can be really mature right? It's just writing in a 9-year-old's vocabulary limit doesn't really make a good story.**

**Thank you Chocolatam for the nice comment! I'll update really fast!**

**Lastly, thank you followers/favs/reviewers for you, I'm updating another chapter right now.**

**Enjoy~**

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Chapter 3. Searching for Answers

"Ib, why don't you take me up to the place you burned Mary's portrait?" Garry asked gently, "I think that's a good place to start."

I nodded and Garry wrapped his hands around mine. I couldn't help noticing how warm and soft Garry's hands were. They were so different from the fake I met before. Garry saw me looking and his hand and he gave me one of his amazing dazzling smiles. I felt a blush creeping on my cheeks.

"Ready Ib?" Garry asked again.

I nodded and lead him through the hallway and up the stairs.

* * *

_"Under, over, under, over." _

_ Mary thought as she worked the needle in her hands. The painting that hanged on the wall watched with interest as Mary's careful little fingers sewn the piece of fabric closed._

_ "You know you can't leave if the blue rose still lives." The painting said._

"_I know." Mary replied._

_ "So, what are you going to do now?" it asked again._

_ "Oh, you'll see."_

_ As she said this, Mary used her doll-like hands to pull a tattered trench coat on her new doll._

_ "Now, it is complete." Mary smiled._

_ "I've always been amazed at you handcrafting skills." the painting praised._

_ "Thank you." Mary said with a big smile. _

"_Oh shoot, it's time for me to go. I'll be back in a moment." Mary said as she left the room and her new doll._

* * *

"So, this is Mary's room." Garry sighed.

I nodded as I looked over at the pile of ash that used to be our traveling companion. I walked across the room and carefully avoided the pile as Garry to through the pile of books and paint that used to belong to Mary. I looked around the room that will always remain in my nightmares. Everything here remained the same as the last time I came in here, but this time I noticed a creepy blue rag doll in a green dress in the corner staring at us with intense red eyes. Garry walked around looking at Mary's charred painting as I kept my sight on the rag doll. Then I noticed some blue writing next to it. Without Alerting Garry, I walked up to the doll and read the writing carefully.

_**"Welcome back Ib. You're getting closer."**_ The writing read.

"Garry?" I looked towards the man. He was examining at the charred painting with interest before noticing me.

"What wrong…Oh, I see." Garry came and also examined the writing.

"It seems like Mary's whereabouts would be somewhere in this room." Garry scratched his chin, "Let's keep looking."

I looked at Mary's pile of books. I read the first one, "How to Make Friends".

I couldn't help it, but tears once again started welling up in my eyes. Garry became alerted when the first drop fell from my eyes. He saw the title of the book in my friend and realization hit his face. He looked indecisive, but still walked over to me.

"Garry?" I asked, "When we go home is it possible to take Mary with us?"

There was only silence.

* * *

**Garry's POV**

I couldn't stand the utter look of despair on Ib's face, but what should I tell her?

_ "Oh of course we can take Mary with us Ib!"_

_ "Mary is our friend!"_

All these thoughts went through my head as I looked at Ib. I loved Ib like a little sister and every time she was sad, it made me hurt inside. However, Mary was a crazy psychopath that was out to get me. Even if Mary could come to the real world with us, I wasn't sure if she was "mentally stable". On the other hand, Mary was just a lonely little kid that needed a friend. Even though she didn't like me very much, I could tell from the way she looks at Ib that she really cared deeply about her.

"Well Ib, I don't think that's a good idea." I replied.

"Why not?" Ib asked.

"I don't think Mary "can" go to the real world Ib." I told her slowly, "She's just a painting."

"But…" she started. Ib tried to continue the conversation, but she realized that I was not going to discuss this topic anymore.

"Let's talk about this after we find her, okay sweetie?" I said as a put on a reassuring smile for her.

"Okay..." Ib answered quietly but she looked quite disappointed

"Now, let's find another door and get out of here." I said.

Right then, the creepy doll in the corner stood up and gave off a big shriek. We could hear eerie footsteps approaching us. I shepherded Ib behind me just as the door exploded revealing a dozen mannequins.

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**A/N:**

**Ooooo, clifthanger sort of...**

**BTW, the italicized parts are events that happen to Mary, not nessesarily in Mary's POV**

**Sorry if this is still a little bit on the short side, but the next couple of chapters are longer.**

**until then..**

**R&R**

**~April**


	4. Chapter 4: Nightmares

**A/N:**

**Sorry for the wait, but here's the new chap!**

**Thank you those that stuck with me and reviewed. I will be posting another chap tomorrow.**

**Enjoy~**

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Chapter 4: Nightmares

**Ib's POV**

"Ib, grab my hand!" Garry shouted as the mannequins poured in from the door.

I grasped my rose tightly and gave my other hand to Garry. The mannequins made us back up to the wall.

* * *

**Garry's POV**

There were too many of them for us to run from. I didn't know if we would be able to get out of this, both alive.

"Ib, close your eyes." I whispered softly to the little girl.

She did as I asked.

I carried her into my arms, bridal style and stepped back into the far corner of the room. I then opened my shirt pocket and made sure my rose was safe. While Ib was inspecting the doll couple of minutes ago, I found a hole behind the remains of Mary's painting. I was hesitant to tell Ib because I didn't want her go looking for Mary, but I guess we don't have a choice now. With Ib in my arms, I leapt into the painting while the mannequins used their sharp arms to lash out at me.

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**Ib's POV **

"You can open your eyes now Ib." Garry's voice called out to me.

"What happened?" I asked.

"Nothing, we're safe now." Garry responded with his famous smile.

Something was wrong, Garry was hurt.

"Garry, can I see your rose?" I asked.

He looked surprised and slowly reached into his pocket to reveal a beautiful blue rose with eight petals.

"Garry!"

"It's okay Ib, I still have eight petals left." Garry reassured me.

"Okay, but just be careful."

I wasn't going to let Garry be hurt again after all that I done to bring him back. But then I felt Garry put his arms on my shoulders.

"Sorry for worrying you Ib." Garry whispered in my ears before lightly pressing his lips to my forehead.

I felt my entire face turn cherry red. Garry's every touch brought shivers throughout my entire body. I wished we could stay like that forever. It made me more determined to bring us both back safely, but right now, my thoughts were clouding and I felt myself dozing off.

"I love you Garry." I said as I yawned.

Before I drifted off, I remembered whispering, "I love you too Ib."

* * *

_"Smart, they escaped from the painting. Looks like I've underestimated the blue rose." the painting on the wall thought out loud._

_ "Should I send more mannequins after them?" the doll formally known as Mary asked._

"_Not yet. Let's see what they do from here."_

* * *

**Ib's POV**

_ I was in a pitch black room with no light. I reached in my pocket and pulled out Garry's lighter at clicked it. It let out a small envelope of light and I was able to see a door in front of me. Without hesitation, I walked to that door and opened it. The door led to another dark room, instead of more mannequins, I saw my mommy and daddy standing there with a distant look in their eyes. _

_ "Ib!" They said simultaneously._

_ "Mommy, daddy?" I asked carefully._

_ "Ib! We missed you so much!" Mommy said._

_ "Come home Ib." Daddy said._

_ I ran towards them and wrapped my arms around them, but I felt nothing but air. Then, they both just evaporated on the spot like steam. Behind them, the same creepy little rag doll in a green dress came towards me with a palette knife in its hand. _

_ "There's no going anywhere Ib, this is your home now." it said._

_ The doll came charging towards me and I screamed at the top of my lungs._

_ And then my world blacked out._

"Ib, wake up!" Garry shouted as he repeatedly shook my shoulders.

I opened my eyes and saw Garry's piercing blue eyes stare worriedly back at me.

"Are you okay? It sounded like you had a nightmare." Garry asked.

"I'm okay, thanks for waking me up." I replied.

"I promised last time I would." Garry gave me one of his sideway grins.

"Garry." I asked.

"Yes?'

"Do you think we'll make it home?" I asked again.

"Of course."

"How do you know for sure?"

He sighed before saying, "I don't know, but that doesn't stop me from doing everything in my power to get you home."

"Thank you Garry."

I dug my hand into my pocket and brought out Garry's lighter. The intricate designs curved under my fingertips. I should probably give it back to him. Garry looked at his lighter in my hand, then he looked at me for a moment and said, "Why don't you hold on to that for right now, you seem to use it better than me anyways."

I couldn't help but smile. "Really?"

He nodded.

I put the precious souvenir carefully back in my skirt pocket.

"Ready to go?" Garry asked.

I nodded.

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**A/N:**

**Awww Garry/Ib moment!**

**Anyways, I will be changing the genre from Adventure/Romance to Adventure/Friendship. But it doesn't mean I won't write anymore cute moments between Garry/Ib. It's just writing romance between a 9-year-old and 18-year-old is hard without it sounding creepy. **

**Onwards to the next chapter!**

**~April**


	5. Chapter 5: Getting Lost

**A/N:**

**Sorry for not posting yesterday...(._.) I wanted to double check each chapter before I post.**

**Again.. sorry for the delay**

**AND thank you people for being patient with me, also those who reviewed!**

**ThAnK yOu!**

* * *

Chapter 5: Getting Lost

**Garry's POV**

"No, I'm pretty sure we go this way Ib." I told the stubborn little girl.

Ib kept shaking her head and tried dragging me away from the door in front of us. We came to a room with two doors, and Ib's somehow determined that the door on left is the one we're supposed to go first.

"Ib, stop being irrational." I told her.

I stepped out to the door in front of us as Ib hid behind me grabbing my coat in her hands. I gently and slowly opened the door. Inside there were three paintings: the lady in red, in blue, and in green. As soon as they saw me, they launched themselves off the wall and crawled towards me. As the fear resided, I quickly closed the door with a thud in front of me. I could hear pounding on the other side as the paintings desperately tried to get on our side.

"Ahhhh!" I shouted and leaned on the door as the ladies pound loudly on the door.

Next to me Ib was laughing like crazy.

"Ib, this is not funny." I said still trying to keep the ladies from barging in.

"I…told…you…so…!" Ib tried to say but she was laughing too hard.

After a while, the ladies gave up and the pounding stopped. This time, I went with Ib to the door on the left. As we walked, she couldn't help the smug look on her face. I carefully opened this door and the scene surprised me. The room was completely barren except for a glass key placed carefully in the center of the room.

"I think this is a trap." I said to Ib.

Ib seemed to disregard my words and walked right across the room to retrieve the key.

"Wait Ib!" I shouted as I ran and tackled her to the ground right as an arrow whizzed past our heads.

"You gotta me more careful next time Ib!" I practically screamed at her.

Ib looked down and said carefully, "I'm sorry Garry."

I hate looking at the hurt in this little girl's face.

"It's okay, just be more careful next time okay?"

She nodded and crawled carefully to retrieve the glass key. I sat there quietly and watched her every move, praying that nothing would go wrong. Ib made her way slowly and carefully as the arrows whizzed past her head. My heart kept pounding as Ib had made a couple of close calls with the arrows. It felt like forever put Ib finally made it to the key.

"I got it Garry!" Ib shouted excitedly. "Here."

Ib tossed me the glass key and kept moving forward.

"What are you doing Ib? Start coming back!" I commanded her.

"Hang on, there's a button on the wall over there." Ib shouted back.

"Wait Ib!"

It was too late, Ib made it to far side wall and sat there closely examining the button before pushing it with her finger. Out of nowhere, there was a "clunk" sound, and a trapdoor appeared under Ib. She was too surprised to save herself, and she fell down the trapdoor with a loud thud. I stood there for a moment, completely dazed by this sudden turn of events. Then I quickly ran to the place she fell, only to get hit with two arrows. But I didn't notice as I ran to the far wall screaming her name.

"Ib!" I screamed as I pounded on the button that she found. To my utter horror, nothing happened. The trapdoor didn't open again, and I sat there completely lost.

"Garry!" a muffled voice shouted from under me. I let out a gasp and began to pound on the floor screaming Ib's name.

"I don't think this door will open again." The voice that belonged to Ib answered sadly.

No, it can't be, after our adventures in this treacherous maze, I know that everything here can be opened with the right key. I looked around the room, completely surprised at the two arrows sticking out of my arm. In my rush to get to Ib's side, I must have gotten hurt. I pulled the arrows out, only to be hit with a surge of pain, but the wound on my arm started healing. The muscles patched up, the blood resided, and the skin began to close up leaving only a purple bruise. Instead of feeling the external pain of the wound, I did feel a strong feeling of internal pain near my heart as I fell to my knees. I looked at my rose; only six petals left now.

"Garry, you go on ahead, I'll be fine." Ib reassured me, " I think I see a door in front of me."

As much as Ib's plan made sense, I couldn't bear to leave her on her own.

"Just go Garry! I'll be fine!" the voice shouted.

With the two options weighing on my mind, I shouted out to Ib.

"Stay there and be careful." I told her, "I'll be back as soon as I can."

And with that, I made my way out of the arrow room with tears glistening in my eyes.

* * *

**Ib's POV**

After Garry's voice disappeared, I was left on my own in a black room so dark that I couldn't even make out my own hand in front of my face. I fished in my pocket for Garry's lighter and brought it out. It brought a small flame of light with a click and revealed a little bit of my surroundings. I didn't see anything useful in the room I was in except for a black door in front of me. Without evening pausing to think, I opened the door in front of me and walked in.

* * *

_"Oh, I see where your plan is going at now," the painting praised, "And a brilliant one it is too!"_

_ Mary felt a blush appear on her blue cheeks making her radiate a soft violet color. She felt truly happy being praised by the painting; after all, they were family._

_ "Wait till you see what else I have planned!" Mary told the painting happily._

_ "I'm so proud of you honey." The painting said with affection._

* * *

**A/N:**

**Hmmm who could Mary be talking to?**

**Interesting...**

**I wonder...**

**Oh wait, I know!**

**HAHAHAHA**

**And I'll never tell!**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

_ "Thank you, father."_


	6. Chapter 6: New Friends

**A/N:**

**Sorry for going missing for a while but the fan on my laptop broke so I had to wait and get it replaced. **

**Thank you people who reviewed and followed. It is noted that you are awesome.**

**Also, thank Eviltwin05 for being an awesome and understanding beta reader. You are awesome too.**

**ON WITH THE STORY!**

* * *

Chapter 6: New Friends

**Garry's POV**

It was painful leaving Ib alone in God knows where, but the quicker I find a way to get her out, the quicker we could be reunited. I sighed at that thought as I left the trapdoor room and exited to the hallway. This was only another door for me to go through and sadly, I already know what was behind there. I sighed once again and opened the door in front of me.

* * *

**Ib's POV**

I held the lighter tightly in my hand even though the heat on the metal was making me flinch. The room I found myself in was just as dark as before, but the entire place was littered with dusty old paintings and sculptures barely making a path for me to walk. As I was walking, one of the creepy paintings extended an arm and grabbed my leg. I couldn't help but utter a little shriek in surprise.

Surprisingly, the painting was just as startled and immediately withdrew its arm back into the painting. The fear the painting caused made my body move involuntarily as I sped up my walk into a run. I ran to the other side of the room just as all of the paintings began to straighten and stand up.

"Please, don't leave." The painting cried out.

I eyed the thing that spoke to me. It was painting of a man, but his face was crossed out with black paint.

"Don't be afraid." Another said.

"We won't hurt you." A third said.

The paintings all began to stir and uttered words along the same lines, but to my surprise, they stayed where they are. The paintings called out but didn't approach me in any way. Deeming these works of art as trustworthy I approached the painting who first spoke to me. I read the plaque around his frame out loud: "Mistake".

"Yes, I am a mistake, that's why I was hung in this room, with all of the mistakes." The painting told my sadly.

I took a good look around the room with my lighter. All of the paintings were different in some way. There was a lady in blue painting with only one eye and another with no features on her face. The sculptures were pretty much the same. There were mannequins with no arms and no legs. The pieces of art stood like statues, never moving until it was its place to talk. Most even collected dust over years of being forgotten.

"Guertena made all of us, but since we were failures, he threw us out." The lady in blue painting sighed unhappily.

"And we all end up here: the rejects room." Mistake said.

I felt sorry for all the paintings. There were painted with no purpose, and they wouldn't be able to be displayed on the walls like the other art, but even though I felt bad about them, getting back to Garry was more important right now.

"Is there any way to get out of here?" I asked Mistake politely.

"I don't know." Mistake answered, "Do you know Error?"

"No, to be honest, we never tried looking for an exit." The sculpture known as Error said.

"Don't you ever think about leaving this place?" I asked in surprise.

Everyone around the room shook their heads.

"We're not supposed to leave." A painting known as wrong said

Somehow, hearing what the paintings said, it reminded me of myself. I was all lost and alone in the gallery before I met Garry. He was someone I could lean and depend on. Right then I made a promise to myself that I would be there for the rejects. I would be just like Garry to them. First, I had to get them all out.

* * *

**Garry's POV**

"Ahhh!" I screamed as those ladies in the paintings crawled towards me in unbelievable speed. I hurriedly turned the door knob, thankfully it turned and opened.

I slammed the door behind me and again heard these persistent ladies pound loudly desperately trying to get out. Sweat began forming on my brow and I quickly wiped it off.

"Hang on Ib." I thought to myself.

The new room seemed safer as the only thing that I could find was an old painting of a fruit basket hanged on the wall. Thankfully, it didn't seem like it wanted to kill me; this room was already better than the last. I pulled out my blue rose: only four petals now. My pace was already slowing down as I felt the overwhelming pain in my heart. As I walk through this room, it smells unpleasantly of charcoal. Up ahead I noticed a cute little bird being attacked by a swarm of stickmen. I wanted to help the poor animal, but bad memories of blue rag dolls came to my mind. I took another look at the cute bird and noticed how badly it was wounded. There were scratches all over its body, and the charcoal could get those infected. I made a quick decision and began to swarm the little stick figures. I began stomping them, taking out at least two or three every time. The bird cowered before noticing that I wasn't going to hurt it. It looked relived and flew up to touch its beak in my hand out of appreciation. After that, wherever I went, the little bird followed me. I guess I found a new traveling companion.

"I think I'm going to call you Eve." I told the animal.

Eve flew up and down in approval. Eve brought a smile to my face just like Ib.

* * *

**Ib's POV**

"This door won't budge!" I screamed at Mistake who just shook his head in defeat. Mistake along with some of the other paintings came out of their frames to help me, but due to the black paint on his face, Mistake's vision isn't very good.

"Just give up Ib, nothing would open it." Mistake sighed in despair monotonously.

I pressed my hand on the brown door, feeling its texture when suddenly, I got a splinter.

"Ow!" I cried in pain and looked at the blood forming on my finger. Suddenly, an idea appeared into my head.

"Hey Mistake, is this door made of wood?" I asked the painting.

"I believe so, but I don't know what you're…Oh!" A smile forming on what appears to be his mouth, "Good idea Ib!"

I called out for all the art to group in the corner since they were flammable too.

"Be careful Ib." Mistake whimpered.

I brought my lighter to the door and watched as the little flame traveled to the door and enveloped the room with light and smoke.

The paintings wooed and ahhed like they haven't see light in a while. The fire burned onto the last stub of the door and then grew weaker and weaker until all there was left was ember and ash.

"Come on guys, let's leave!" I told the paintings excitedly.

None of them budged.

"What's wrong?" I asked Mistake.

"Ib, we don't want to leave. We're rejects, this is where we belong." Mistake said to me, black tears forming in his eyes.

"What if the outside world won't accept us?" Error asked.

I crouched down and gave a sad smile to Error. I then stood up and found a place where all the paintings could see me and began my speech.

"Outside, there is light and life. There are other art just like you hung on walls and bask in life. They are admired and appreciated, but here you all are, not daring taking step into new territory; some even scared of your own shadow! Take control of your fears! You won't get your happy ending if you just spend the rest of your life in your shell!" I stopped and took in a breath. This was far the most words I've ever said in a single breath.

"So, are you all with me?" I asked.

The pieces of art stood up one by one and followed behind me as I lead through the door and to the light and the unknown.

* * *

**A/N:**

**I promise I will update really fast from now on! Promise!**

**I already have some chapters written so you can expect more chaps from me soon!**

**Again like always...**

**PLEASE REVIEW/FAV/FOLLOW!**

**~ApRiL**


	7. Chapter 7: Riddles and Games

**A/N:**

**New Chapter! **

**Thank you people that have given me support by just reading my story. Thank you people who reviewed!**

**Since school is starting...(cry..) I might not be able to right as much... I always like to burry myself in clubs and work... But I'll try my best to make time to write!**

**As you may have noticed smart people, that I used some characters and scenes from the dungeon part of Ib. ( for those who didn't get the update...well get the update! it's awesome. ) The order of rooms in the story won't be the same as in the dungeon in the game.**

**A BIG THANKS to my awesome beta reader. You are awesome!**

**Before I forget...**

**Ib and the secret dungeon rooms all belong to the awsome Kouri!**

* * *

Chapter 7: Riddles and Games

**Garry's POV**

After taking a short nap, I saw Eve next to me flapping around excitedly. I petted its head and yawned. Even though Eve is good company, I do miss Ib very much. I got up immediately and with this goal in mind, I set out again.

"Chirp, chirp!" Eve greeted me excitedly.

Eve pecked my hand in affection, and I let her ride on my shoulder. I checked the room before us: no vases. I checked my rose too, looking sadly at the four petals. As I walked, I noticed the ground before me getting darker and darker. It looked like someone spilled a bottle of dark blue goo on the floor and I was getting closer and closer to the source, and I didn't look forward to finding out what was causing it.

Inside the next room we were in, there was a painting on the wall with a question mark on it. I read the title and it was named "The Inquisitor". The name seemed pretty obvious. Also in the room was a door and vase full of strange red liquid. I tried the door, but to my surprise, it was locked. With no other choice, I began to examine the painting when I noticed the tiny words inscribed next to it;

_Three questions is what I'll ask_

_Answer them right, you would pass_

_Answer them wrong, I won't bite_

_Just take a petal out of spite_

_But first to wake me from my rest_

_Bring two apples and no less _

I scratched my head and looked at the poem. Two apples? Where was going to find those?

"Chirp chirp!" Eve squawked and pecked my head.

Eve must have seen my look of confusion because she then grabbed my already tattered coat between her beak and dragged me towards the room we just came from.

"Hey! What are you doing Eve?" I yelled at the little creature as she continued dragging me down the hall. When she finally let go, I realized we were in the same room where I defended Eve from the stickmen. Eve looked at me with an intense glare. I stood there confused for a moment before realizing the painting on the wall.

"Oh, that's what you mean." I face palmed.

The painting looked really realistic. There were apples, bananas, and pears in a glass bowl. I tried to reach my hand it the painting, but to my embarrassment, it didn't work. Eve stood on my shoulder and chirped mockingly. I tried talking to the painting which only made Eve chirp louder. Finally, in frustration, I banged my fists on the painting. To my utter surprise, the fruits on the picture moved ever so slightly. An idea came to me.

I put my hands on both sides of the painting and shook with all my might. The fruit rolled right out of the painting and onto the floor. I examined the fruits in my hand. They looked real. I sniffed the fruits, they smelled real. I then began to peal a banana and took a bite. They taste real. I gathered the required apples in my arms.

"Now, come on," I said to Eve, "Let's bring these back."

"Chirp!"

* * *

_"Why do my plans always go wrong?" Mary screamed. It was supposed to be perfect. Garry would slowly die on his way towards this room while Ib was supposed to sit tight until Mary could retrieve her. Who would have thought that Ib could have gotten all the rejects on her side!_

_ "ARGGGG!" Mary shouted at the painting._

_ "Now Mary, a temper tantrum will get you nowhere." The painting said sternly._

_ "But father…" Mary started._

_ "If you really want something, go do it yourself. And stop complaining!" the painting disciplined._

_ "Fine." The doll known as Mary said as she stood up and walked out of the room with nothing but her trusty palette knife. _

* * *

**Ib's POV**

I lead the pieces of art forward. Every so often, a lady in red painting would leap of the wall, but when she notices our vast army, she would be terrified enough to go crawling back onto the wall.

"Do you know where you're going Ib?" Mistake asked me.

"Uh, not really, but I think I can find an exit." I replied a little too quickly.

Mistake nodded. They all seem to completely trust me, which gives me a little bit of pressure. "What if I'm leading them to a trap?" I thought. After they put all of their faith in me, I felt scared that I might mess up. Mistake must have seen the fear and doubt in my eyes.

"Ib, whatever happens, just remember that leaving that place is the best thing that has ever happened to any of us rejects, no matter the cost." Mistake reassured me.

I answered him in a nod.

We came to a locked door. I was about to suggest looking for a key when Mistake started talking to the painting of a girl on the wall.

"Why should I give you the key?" the painting yelled out.

"Please?" Mistake asked.

"For the last time, NO!" the girl answered.

"Fine, I didn't want to do this but…" Mistake said and started shaking the girl's painting.

"Hey! What are you doing! STOP!" the girl screamed.

"Fine! I'll give you the key!" the girl replied unwillingly

The girl gave Mistake an utter look of hatred and dropped a silver key from her painting.

"We're sorry for disturbing you miss." I apologized solemnly. The girl scoffed and ignored me.

I carefully placed the key in the lock and turned. Fortunately, I heard a click and swung the door open. I lead everyone inside and heard a door close behind me. All of the sudden, the lights started to dim.

"Did any of you close that door?" I asked the crowd but they all answered with shakes of their heads.

I tried the door we came from, but it was locked. "Great." I thought.

"Well, let's move forward then." I said.

Just then, I noticed the blue rag doll in a green dress sitting on the floor, watching us with great interest. It must have seen me looking at it because it gave me a big smile.

"You found me." The doll said, "Looks like you win the game Ib."

* * *

**A/N:**

**Who's the doll? So creepy...**

**Anyways, sorry for the clifthanger, but you can probably guess who the doll is...**

**Props to whoever guesses right first.**

**Review please? Pretty please? **

**~ApRiL**


	8. Chapter 8: War

Chapter 8: War

**Garry's POV**

"Here's your apples." I told the painting. I then threw the fruit in front of the inquisitor hastily, and they disappeared much like the balls of paint I had to collect. Right as the fruit evaporated, the question mark painted on the canvas rippled to reveal a message etched on the painting in blood-red print.

_First question:_

_How many Lady in Red paintings are there in this gallery?_

"What kind of question is this?" I asked suspiciously.

"Chirp, chirp!" Eve flew up and down, coming into my vision. I waved the pesky little bird to the side.

"Not now, Eve." I grumbled, raking my memory of some form of answer.

"Chirp, chirp!" Eve flew in front of my face and started waving her wings back and forth. I paused and watched her performance curiously.

"Do you know the answer Eve?" I asked the peculiar bird. I paused and rethought what brought me to ask the bird a question bird a question, but I was surprised when Eve franticly nodded her head.

"Chirp, chirp, chirp" Eve chirped slowly.

"Three?"

"Chirp, chirp." Eve chimed.

"Three, two, thirty-two?" I asked the bird questionably. Eve dismissed my suspicions by nodding confidently and excitedly. I turned towards the painting and said loudly to the painting.

"Thirty-two."

_Correct_

I petted the smart little creature on its head just as the message disappeared to reveal a new one.

_Second Question:_

_What is name of Guertena's sculpture of a red rose?_

Glad that I paid attention in the museum, I answered proudly, "the Embodiment of the Spirit."

_Correct_

I smiled as Eve nudged my face in praise.

_Last question:_

_What was Guertena's last work?_

"This is too easy!" I thought proudly to myself.

"Mary." I pronounced loudly and clearly.

* * *

**Ib's POV**

"Mary?" I asked cautiously.

All the doll did was smile eerily. My band of art became terrified too as I watch them shake with fear.

"How are you still alive?" I asked doubtfully.

"Oh Ib." The doll's little cackle sent shivers down my spine. "Of all people, you should know that every painting have their own souls." Mary explained matter-of-factly, rolling her beady scarlet eyes "By destroying my painting, you only succeeded in destroying my body, not my life source. So of course, my soul wondered on for a host until it found my little prized doll."

"So, I didn't kill you?" I asked quivering, but praying that it would be too dark for Mary to see so.

"Of course not, silly." Mary replied, glaring at me.

I felt like a huge weight was taken off my shoulders. The weight was, of course, guilt.

"But Ib, you did cheat in my game," Mary's said with a psychotic smile on her face, "and sadly, I can't forgive that."

From behind the back pocket of her little green dress, Mary pulled out her old palette knife, a weapon that I knew so well, and slowly approached us. Mistake grabbed my hand and pulled me behind him. The others saw this, followed suit, and fortified a wall in front of me.

"You'll have to get through all of us to get to Ib!" Mistake shouted bravely and the other pieces of art roared in approval.

Mary laughed coldly and raised her dainty little doll hand in the air and waved it around in a simple hand gesture.

We were stunned when suddenly through the door, an army of art barged through the door. The army consisting of ladies and mannequins in every color, and they were coming at us, fast. Mary raised her hand again in a commanding way for them to stop, and they willingly obeyed.

"I'm only going to ask you once," Mary said coldly to Mistake, "Hand over Ib, or I'll take her myself."

"No!" Mistake said with the same amount of acid in his words.

Mary smiled and released her hand. That's when the war began.

* * *

**Garry's POV**

_INCORRECT_

The entire canvas swirled and turned blood-red and emitted an invisible electric shock wave that brought me to my knees.

"Arg!" I grunted trying not to scream in pain and collapsed on to the floor. I then reached in my coat pocket in search of my rose: three petals. I could barely stand my ground anymore "Wait." I thought to myself. I knew for a fact that Mary was Guertena's last work. I remember reading about it in that mysterious book, and that's the reason why Mary wanted to kill me. However, somehow this painting says otherwise. So Guertena painted something else after Mary?

"Chirp!" Eve's annoying yet helpful screeches brought me back to reality. That's when I heard the distant sound of fighting at the other end of the door. I immediately ran over to the door but stumbled on my foot along the way. It surprised me how this little run had made me breathe so heavily. Bringing that fact to the back of my mind as I handle more important matters, I pressed my ear to the door. The other side sounded like utter chaos. Suddenly, I wasn't in such a hurry to open that door anymore.

"Ib where are you!" I heard a strange voice's muffled scream from the other side of the door.

Wait, Ib's on the other side?

Without another thought, I pounded on the locked door screaming Ib's name hoping that she would hear me. Eve noticed my efforts and also tried to help by pecking furiously at the door. It felt like an eternity that I pounded on the metal door that confined me from Ib. My heart was full of worry as I thought of all the events happening on the other side with Ib right in the middle. My vision started to blur with tears that blocked my sight. When it finally dawned to me to give up, that's when I heard a familiar voice call out my name above all the chaos.

* * *

**Ib's POV**

It was so sudden. Paintings pounced on paintings while the sculptures conducted hand to hand combat with the mannequins. In the dead center of the battlefield, our very own no-mans-land, was littered with broken paintings, lost sculpture limbs, and mannequins too weak to remain fighting only to be tread upon by others. The worst part of the entire thing was that knowing I was the one who had caused this; I was the one who made countless innocent lives sacrifice themselves for me. I stood back cowardly, holding on to my rose tightly in my hand. The dense wall in front of me became thinner and thinner as sporadic fighting broke out. I sink to my knees unsure of what I'd do if one of Mary's paintings reached me. In my moment of pure weakness, I heard Mistake call out for me.

"Ib, where are you!" Mistake's panicked voice broke through my train of thoughts. I listened intently to the origin of the voice and made my way carefully to where Mistake was, almost getting hurt by several paintings in intense combat.

"Ib! Thank goodness you're okay!" Mistake answered with a sigh of relief. I gave his frame a quick hug to show my worriedness and gratitude. As I touched Mistakes frame, I noticed all the battle wounds that appeared on him. His frame was chipped in places, his canvas was scratched and ripped, and also, he seemed to be panting tiredly. Mistake carefully led me away from the fighting by letting me hide behind his frame. Stealthily, sheltered by his frame, we made our way to the other side by the two doors. After we got there safely without being spotted, Mistake stepped out of his frame and guided me to the doors. That's when I heard a familiar voice behind one of the doors.

"Ib! Ib!" the muffled but worried voice of Garry came from the other side.

"Garry?" I shouted to the other side. On the other side, Garry's voice became more hopeful and answered me.

"Ib! Are you alright? Are you hurt?" Garry's worried voice echoed.

"Yes, I'm alright, but let's open this door first." I responded.

"Do you per chance have a key?" Garry asked only half-jokingly.

"No." I replied. Mistake nudged me in with confusion on his face, and I explained to him.

"He's Garry, my friend." I whispered to Mistake which he immediately nodded.

"I think we can break this door down." Mistake told me, "tell your friend to push on the door and we'll all pull."

I nodded in determination to Mistake and then spoke loudly to Garry, "Push on the door and we'll pull!"

"Got it!" Garry replied in obedience.

Mistake and I reached the handle and put all of our body weight pulling on the door. The door didn't budge at all, not even a hair sliver of length.

"Wait Ib, there's another way to open this door!" Garry shouted, "Do you know the name of Guertena's last piece of work?"

"How is this relevant?" I thought to myself, but I still pondered at this question.

"Isn't it Mary?" I asked but got a rejection from Garry. I then looked at Mistake as he looked at me like the answer was obvious.

"Mistake do you know the answer?" I asked.

Mistake nodded and replied, "It's quite simple actually. 'Mary' was the last Guertena painting to be discovered, but before his death, he did paint one more piece of art." Mistake said solemnly. "Tell your friend it's called 'Self-Portrait'."

I nodded and passed the information to Garry hurriedly.

* * *

**Garry's POV:**

"Garry, it's called 'Self-Portrait'!" Ib's voice called out franticly.

I ran over to 'The Inquisitor' and answered, "Self-Portrait." I closed my eyes and bit my lip in wait of another paralyzing shock, but fortunately, none came. The painting then shimmered once more to reveal a last message:

_Correct, you may pass, but go at your own risk_

* * *

**A/N: Sorry for being missing for a while. School started...**

**Thanks those for sticking with my story! Gold stars for everyone!**

**REVIEW!**

**~ApRiL**


	9. Chapter 9: The Reunion

Chapter 9: The Reunion

**Ib's POV**

Mistake and I stood there, in wait of the glorious sight of Garry bursting through the door. We were silent, but we were listening to the occasional scream of pain in the battlefield behind us, occasionally wincing. After what seemed like a decade, we heard a click from the door. Soon after, the door pushed open in a hurried swing and revealed a smiling Garry and an adorable little bird resting gently his shoulder.

"Ib!" Garry exclaimed with an utter look of relief on his worn rugged face.

In excitement, I ran over and felt Garry's long arms envelope me in a big bear hug. We stayed like that for only a few short seconds, but it felt like an eternity before Garry withdrew his comforting arms. Unfortunately, during our reunion, the mannequins noticed our group and began coming towards us. Garry latched on to my hand and pulled me to the other door with Mistake following behind us just as fast. The door turned with a simple twist, and we all ran inside and slammed the door behind us.

We stood there stunned with Mistake leaning on the door. Garry gave me one last relieved smile before collapsing on the floor.

"Garry! Garry! I screamed, shaking his shoulders.

It was silent except for the loud pounding on the door behind us and the loud pounding of our uneven heartbeats. After a while, the tireless mannequins finally gave up, but Garry laid there on the floor unconscious. I sat by his side, occasionally brushing a strand of lavender hair out of his face. My heart was filled with worry.

"Maybe he's just tired?" Mistake tried to help.

I nodded, more to convince myself than Mistake, when suddenly, I saw Garry flutter his eyes.

"Garry!" I couldn't help but scream again.

Garry opened his eyes, slowly sat up, and leaned on the wall. He put his hand on his head as if having a headache.

"Sorry to worry you Ib," Garry smiled weakly, "I must have lost more petals than I thought."

"How many petals, Garry?" I asked determinedly.

"That's not important right now. I have a friend I'd like to introduce you to Ib." Garry tried to change the subject. He pushed the little bird in front of me. I noticed the little bird look at me curiously so I stared intensely back at it. Garry must have seen my look of confusion and immediately his weak eyes became brightened with a smile.

"Ib, this is Eve," Garry explained happily, "I met her on my way and she followed me here."

Upon hearing its name, Eve flew from Garry's shoulders and rested on my extended wrist, giving my hand a small peck.

"That means it likes you Ib!" Garry said before giving a small chuckle. I couldn't help but smile too. After Eve flew back on Garry's shoulders, Garry finally noticed Mistake standing shyly behind me.

"And who is this Ib?" Garry asked and flashed Mistake a friendly smile.

"I'm Ib's friend," Mistake stuttered, "My name is Mistake."

Noticing the awkward situation, I quickly added softly, "He and the other paintings helped protect me from Mary."

Garry pondered for a short moment, gave a brilliant smile, and extended his arm to Mistake, "My name is Garry. Thank you so much for protecting Ib while I was not here."

Mistake stared at Garry's outstretched hand and then grabbed on with his own giving him a firm handshake. Mistake smiled eagerly but said nothing.

Garry was the first to speak, "Mistake, how did you know the answer to the question?"

I was beginning to wonder that too.

"Oh, that!" Mistake answered upon turning bright red, "New paintings get thrown in our room all the time so we tend to hear a lot of gossip about the gallery."

Garry nodded and said nothing. I could tell he was deep in thought. We continued walking forward for a couple minutes before all of the sudden, Eve started flapping around excitedly. It acted all weird and began to move in an interesting way. She walked around strangely in small steps and finally stopped to pause. Then, she just flew straight to the painting at the end of the hall, picking up the speed, and left us all in her dust. At the end of the hall, Eve jumped excitedly and waited for our arrival.

"That was strange." Garry finally commented while still staring at the trail Eve left. I helped Garry up and we followed Eve to the painting. Strangely, we walked for a long time; longer than we should have without reaching the painting. I decided to ignore it thinking it was my own hallucination.

"Shouldn't we be there already?" Mistake asked. Garry looked confused also but decided to ignore it. We walked some more, but still, the painting and Eve didn't seem any closer. I knew we had to go back. I then pulled on Gary's torn coat, careful not to get it any more torn, and pointed in the direction we came from. Garry looked at me with his shimmering blue eyes and nodded.

"Let's head on back." Garry announced followed by a quick nod from Mistake. We started heading back, but surprisingly, it took us not two seconds to reach the door we came in from.

"That's strange." Garry said to himself but loud enough for me to hear.

At the other end of the hall, Eve noticed our confusion and quickly flew back. Surprisingly, it took her only a few seconds to cover the distance we've been trying to walk for ten minutes.

"Chirp!" Eve exclaimed loudly to make sure we were all paying attention before repeating her weird dance across the floor. That's when realization hit me. I began to follow Eve's footsteps as Eve chirped happily at me.

"Forward, forward, right, forward, left, left, forward, forward, right, forward." I thought to myself. After making my way successfully along the floor, Eve gave me an excited chirp as we made our way to the end of the hall.

"Your turn Garry!" I called out to them.

* * *

**Garry's POV**

I looked at the path skeptically but obliged nonetheless. I nodded to Mistake and he nodded back. I had my doubts about the painting, but Ib seemed to really trust him and I trust Ib's judgment. I followed the path carefully trying not to mess up, but it was very difficult in my weak condition. Mistake kept up with me perfectly and soon enough, we reached Ib. I noticed that Ib was studying the painting intensely on the wall.

"A Place of..." Ib looked at me expectantly with wide eyes.

"A Place of Warmth." I answered Ib. The painting showed a warm cozy nest with a little bird just like Eve sleeping soundly in it. Eve looked at me and then looked to the painting. I then understood immediately.

"Is this your home Eve?" I asked the little creature only to get a nod from it. Eve then came by and gave each of us a peck on the cheek before flying into the portrait and slipping into the nest. The other bird in the painting woke up and snuggled with Eve. The scene nearly made my heart melt.

"Goodbye Eve." Ib, the usually quiet one, said. Eve gave one last chirp before closing its eyes and going to sleep.

"Let's keep going so we can go home too!" I gave Ib a reassuring smile. Ib nodded determinedly as we walked took the door next to the painting.

The door led us to a hallway but unfortunately, it was a dead end.

"I think we should go ba..." Mistake said before he was interrupted by a loud, thunderous crashing sound from somewhere above us. I shepherded Ib behind me as the sound grew louder and louder. When it finally seemed like it was going to quiet down, the ceiling started to crumble into little pieces cascading down on the floor. Before us, the ceiling opened up and a flight of stairs crashed down in a blast of smoke. It looked like it could be a way out. I was just about to take the stairs when I noticed the same blue rag doll in the green dress slowly make its way down, step by step. I felt both Ib and Mistake tense beside me, and I studied the doll's features curiously.

Surprisingly it was Ib who muttered the first word.

"Mary."

Mary?

* * *

**A/N: Dun dun dunnnn!**

**Sorry for the boring filter chapter, but I promise, the climax is near!**

**I planned for this story to have fifteen chapters, but I promise, they later chapters are really long. **

**Until then.**

**R&R please!**

**~ApRiL**


	10. Chapter 10: The Sacrifice

**A/N: Sorry for disappearing for a while... But honestly, I didn't have internet for the past week! I know how some people say that because they didn't want to write, but I seriously had NO INTERNET!**

**Because the internet was down, I had a lot more time on my hand... So I wrote A LOT during my free time.**

**I will post the next chapter as soon as I hear back from my beta reader.**

**Expect the next chapter soon~ and thanks for being patient!**

* * *

Chapter 10: The Sacrifice

**Garry's POV**

Mary? What is going on? I know this place causes a lot of hallucinations, but I'm pretty sure Mary isn't a blue rag doll.

"Long time no see Garry," the doll mimicked Mary's voice, "It seems that you're doing well. How many petals left? Three? Two?"

Ib gasped and looked at me in surprise, and pushed me away from in front of her. Instead of me protecting her, Ib stood bravely in front of me, refusing to budge.

"Ib, still so brave aren't you." Mary mocked, "I was going to save you, but you proved to be a bad friend. And bad friends have to be punished.

"Who are you and why are you using Mary's voice?" I felt the uncontrollable need to change the subject.

The doll let out a chilly laugh that nearly gave me goose bumps.

"Who am I?" the doll said, "I'm hurt Gary. I thought we were friends. No matter, adults are dumb anyways; you can't even figure out who I am when Ib already said my name."

"Mary?" I asked skeptically.

"The one and only." Mary beamed. "My spirit lives and so will I. Getting rid of me won't be an easy task.

As Mary said this, she slowly reached into her back pocket and pulled out her palette knife.

"But you on the other hand," Mary spoke with a crazed smile. I pulled Ib to the door just as Mary lunged for us. Sadly, the door was bolted shut. I tried ramming the door with my body, but it didn't even budge. It seemed that the door we came in from became like a painting on the wall. I was not careful enough. I watched in horror as the first slash caught Ib on the shoulder, two petals fell gently from her red rose.

"Ib!" Mistake and I screamed simultaneously.

There was no time to waste. I gathered Ib in my arms and tried to escape, but since I lost too many petals, I fell to the ground in a grunt of pain. I carefully shielded Ib from the fall, but her face was filled with more worry than pain. I tried to get up, but my body was refusing my commands. She stood up in front of my collapsed body and faced the doll bravely. Mary smiled and walked to us slowly.

"We would have been such good friends Ib!" Mary's eyes glazed over, "We could have colored, played hide-and-seek, and play tag..."

"What do you know about being a friend!" Ib's voice sounded so spiteful and even reproachful of Mary, probably for the first time by the way Ib suddenly look much more intimidating. Mary stood there, stunned at hearing Ib respond to her in such a way.

"Good friends help out each other. Sometimes even sacrifice themselves for one another." Ib's voice broke into a sob, "What have you done other than manipulate and hurt us?!"

Mary's voice began to quiver, "No... I am a good friend... I..."

"You are never going to have a friend Mary!" Ib shouted at her harshly, "Because you don't even treat anyone like a friend! You treat us like nothing but toys that you can play with and throw away when they no longer work you want them to!"

"No... I am a good friend..." Mary held her head in confusion and stared down at the floor. "I'm been... No... I am... Stop...liar...Liar...LIAR!"

Mary snapped out of whatever state of confusion she was in and faced Ib with a demonic sneer. Her beady red doll eyes flashed with anger and uncontrollable rage. The ground near her feet spread fiery red cracks.

"LIAR!" Mary screamed for the last time before charging at Ib with a knife in her hand like a mad bull.

* * *

**Ib's POV**

Mary came running at me faster than I could dodge. Even if I could get away, it would only result in Garry getting hurt. Out of sheer panic, I squeezed my eyes shut.

"Ahhhh!" Came a scream from right in front of me. I gave myself a mental checkup: It didn't hurt anywhere. Finally I slowly opened my eyes again. I saw a stunned Mary holding a knife covered in blood, staring right into my eyes. In front of me, Mistake fell to the floor twitching with pain. Mary saw the gruesome scene; fear immediately flooded her eyes. She looked at me one more time, and ran up the stairs, into unknown territory.

"Mistake!" I yelled, more tears flooding my eyes. "Please be okay!"  
Even Garry sat up, looking clearly hurt, and rested a hand on my shoulder in comfort.

"Ib..." Mistake coughed. The wound on his torso looked beyond saving and red paint poured from it at an alarming rate. I couldn't control myself. The tears just won't go away.

"Don't give up." Garry said firmly, "For Ib..."

"Ib," Mistake said weakly, " Don't be mad if I can't help you anymore, okay?"

"Of course I won't be mad!" I sobbed.

"I'm sorry I wasn't strong enough," Mistake whispered, his focus beginning to waver. "There is something you need to know before I go..."

I nodded eagerly between sniffles.

"There is one way you can get home," Mistake voice was getting more distant, "Legend has it that the creator of this place, Guertena, used only his glass paintbrush to make all of his art. Find it, and the painting may be patched."

"I will." I said determinedly, wiping away my tears, "Don't worry about me anymore Mistake."

"Garry, you take care of Ib," Mistake said in a barely audible whisper, "I can't be there to take the knife anymore."

"Don't worry about Ib," Garry nodded, "I will be strong for her.

"Smile for me one last time Ib," Mistake said as he grunted in pain.

I gave Mistake the bravest, specialist, most brilliant smile I could muster. I watched in horror as he became still, his lips no longer moving. Right before my eyes, Mistake's body liquefied, turning into piles of different colored paint in a shape of a human. In another half second, the paint lost the battle to gravity and splashed on the ground in the shape of my long lost friend. The paint dried up and tattooed itself to the floor, being a constant reminder of the brave, yet stupid painting that sacrificed itself to save me.

"Let's go Ib." Garry nudged me but I realized that I lost my ability to move.

"Ib," Garry started to say gently, "Don't let Mistake's sacrifice go to waste. We have to get you out of here."

Garry helped me up by giving me a little push and lead me up the stairs. I slowly went up step by step, still trying to blink back my tears. I refused to look back. I didn't want to see the reminder painted on the ground.

But I promise you Mistake, I will not let you go in vain.


	11. Chapter 11: The Last Faceoff

Chapter 11: The Last Faceoff

**A/N: Sorry for the late update yet again... School has been so hectic but I know that it's not a good excuse. SORRY...**

***Bows head in deep shame***

**To make up for my procrastination and laziness, I decided to post two chapters today! Also, be on the lookout for a new story from me soon. It's still a Ib fanfic, but its more a IbxGarry story. **

**And as always.. thank you supporters, haters, commenters, followers, favoriters, and my wonderful beta~**

**~ApRiL**

* * *

**Garry's POV**

It's pretty hard not to notice Ib sulking while treading slowly up the stairs. I couldn't even think of anything to say to comfort her. But I have to her props; she tried so hard to hold back the tears that her face was turning puffy and red. Somehow, Ib managed to still look so adorable even with her blemished face.

We took the stairs slowly, only because Ib didn't have the emotional strength, and I didn't have the physical strength to walk. The slippery steps beneath our feet were gleaming beautiful obsidian. It seemed that it was polished recently, as we could almost see our reflections. I tried hard to only look at my toes when we walked, trying not to disturb Ib. She mimicked my actions as we climbed in silence. Strangely, it was Ib who broke our awkward silence first.

"Garry, what Mary said about your rose…" Ib stuttered meekly.

"Yes Ib?" I answered in a soothing and gentle tone.

"Well? Why didn't you tell me?" Ib demanded, tears were at the bridge of escaping. I felt so happy that Ib cared so much about me, since so little people would do that in my life. I must have let a smile escape to my lips because Ib stared at me quizzically.

"Why are you so happy Garry? You're not well!" Ib mumbled, a rosy blush creeping to her cheeks.

"I'm just so happy, Ib…" I answered truthfully. "For such a fine young lady like yourself to care about someone like me."

Ib remained silent but still wore the blush on her face as she found a sudden interest in her shoes. I couldn't help myself. I patted her head adoringly causing her big doe like eyes to focus intently at me. I then crouched down to her level and connected my lavender eyes to her piercing ruby ones.

"Thank you Ib." My voice had shrunken into a mere whisper, "For everything."

Ib's face only grew redder as she looked away afraid to meet my eyes. I smiled and patted her head again before standing up and resuming my walk. Ib quickened her pace to keep up with my long strides, and there we were again, side by side walking into unknown territory of Guertena's twisted maze.

* * *

**Mary's POV**

They're liars, all of them!

I ran up the stairs with familiarity not even bothering to stop.

They're coming after to me, and they are going to kill me.

"Father? Help? Please save me!" I called out in my mind hoping that somehow, father will get the message.

I ran out from a secret exit of the toy box, one that I proudly designed myself. It leads directly from under the museum. To my command, a section of the wall opened and I quickly ran outside. The world that I designed myself was in chaos. From the distance, the lake was overflowing, and it would seem that the acidic water would soon overflow my entire city. I clutched my rose just a little tighter. Its felt-like yellow petals brushed softly along my cloth-made hand. It is so uncomfortable being in this body, but father said that this was only temporary; he said he would paint my body after he finds his paintbrush again. Until then, my rose would be my most precious, protected item. Without it, my spirit would die along with my body. Tucking it safely back inside my dress, I walked to the edge of the water. It expanded at least twice the size it was used to be and blocked the road between the toy box and the pink house. I tried stepping in the water to cross, but the deep water would probably drown my miniature doll body.

What is happening? Why is my world falling apart?

I am terrified. What if they catch me? The only thing I have to protect myself is my palette knife against the two of them. Father, please save me! They're going to kill me! Please, help!

Please…

* * *

**Ib's POV**

"It looks like we reached the top." Garry announced happily, "And we're one step closer to getting home."

I refused to look at Garry because I was still blushing from the early episode. Garry took my hand in his and lead me up the final stairs. In front of us was an open slab of wall. It exposed the artificial sunlight coming from the fake sun. Strangely, the outside world was covered with a blue hue. It turned out, that the lake from before had flooded the entire city.

"Be careful Ib," Garry warned with a serious expression of his face, "Best not let your rose touch that water. Remember what happened last time?"

I nodded. Last time, curiosity got the best of me and I dipped my rose into the lake water. Immediately, the petals started peeling away one by one before I hurriedly snatched it out.

The calm air was disturbed by the sound of a little girl sobbing in the distance. I pulled on Garry arm, and with my other free hand, I pointed in the direction of the voice. Garry nodded in understanding and lead me with him. I couldn't help but notice Garry half limping while he walked. His strength must have taken a great toll. I flexed my shoulder, the part where Mary stabbed me, and was happy to find that I could no longer feel the pain as it has numbed. We walked on, passing several familiar chalk houses. I hear a raspy pant next to me and saw Garry's unusually pale face. The sobbing in the distance was becoming closer, but at the same time, the water level was lowering. Fortunately, the water seemed ineffective when it comes into contact with our skin. The crying became louder and louder. A couple more steps and we found a pair of familiar red eyes sulking in the corner. The doll didn't acknowledge us. Garry tensed beside me and immediately pulled on my hand.

"Ib, best not bother her," Garry whispered nervously. Unfortunately, Mary noticed up and stood up.

"Don't come near me!" she shouted in fear. Garry pulled on my hand harder but I found myself unable to move. For no apparent reason, I began stepping towards Mary.

"Ib, what are you doing?" Garry half shouted in worry.

I paid no attention to him and crouched down until I was the little doll's height.

"Stop it! What are you doing!?" Mary sputtered.

It felt like an uncontrollable force had overtaken me. I didn't know whether it was out of grief for my friend Mistake, or for anger at the doll for putting us through everything. But I reached out my arm and swung hard. Slapping Mary clean in the face with so much force that she almost flew off.

"Wha…" Mary touched the part of her cheek my hand had come in contact with. Even against the doll's fabricated cheeks, I could tell that it stung.

"Ib?" Garry said in confused tone.

I walked back to Garry and lead him away from the doll, not even giving it a second glance.


	12. Chapter 12: The Death of a Rose

Chapter 12: The Death of a Rose

**A/N: As I promised~ here you go!**

**Honestly, this was one of my favorite chapters, both to write and to read. To me, it is a little dark and confusing at first, but get to the end and you'll get it!**

**I hope you enjoy reading this chapie as much as I enjoyed writing it!**

* * *

**Mary's POV**

My cheek, it hurts so much. But they're walking away; they not going to kill me? I don't understand. I caused them so much pain and misery. Ib must be weaker than I thought. She doesn't even have the guts to face me! I clenched my little doll hands together, anger beginning to naw at my gut.

How dare she just walk away, ignoring me like that!

"Stop!" I felt my voice scream. Ib finally turned around and looked at me in annoyance. Her look only angered spurred my anger on. I hate it when people ignore me!

Ib stared into my eyes and in them, for the first time, I saw pure hatred. I thought the mere idea of Ib hating anyone seemed impossible, but I guess I was wrong on that part. That look might have scared others away instantly but I was strong; I didn't even flinch. I grabbed my knife and lunged, but Ib was ready, she dodged and pushed Garry out of the way. I saw my chance and began to step towards Garry. Ib was too far away to help! But Garry, the meanie, pulled out his lighter. The flash of memory of that very object destroying by old body stopped my approach. I was so afraid, not for the doll body, but for the rose hidden inside my dress. If Garry burns that, I'll be gone forever.

I tried to back away but Ib was already behind me, she held me up by my hair, which hurt a lot. She yanked the knife from my hand and threw it down on the ground. I tried thrashing around in her grasp but to no avail. She just wouldn't let go! I wiggled a little bit more but my rose fell from my dress! I tried to reach for it, but it fell slowly to the ground just like a feather. Ib looked me, confused, and then picked up my rose! She fingered it in her hand gently taunting me. I watched as she delicately fingered the soft yellow rose between her fingers, studying it curiously with her blood-red eyes. I matched her eyes with a nasty stare, but she paid no attention.

"Is this your life force Mary?" Ib asked innocently.

I refused to look at her much less give an answer. Instead, I thrashed around even more in her grasp.

"Giveitback! Giveitback!" I screeched, my voice sounding like a pathetic little child.

"Don't worry Mary, I promise I won't hurt it. I'll give it back if you calm down." Ib said almost mocking me.

"No, I want it NOW!" I screamed at her, though at this point I refused to look at her face. I bet she was smiling now. She can kill me with one little rip of fabric. I bet she's itching to do that right now, and having this innocent façade only to taunt me. She might hide it well but I can see the glint in her eyes. Ib arched her back, and something appeared on it. Just then, Ib suddenly grew giant demon wings and her skin turned pale blue. Garry had the same transformation and his blue pupils turned blood-red. Ib fingered my rose in her claws and laughed.

"You think I'd ever give this back! You little witch, you deserve what you get. No wonder you have no friends!" Ib talked in a screechy voice.

Both Garry and her laughed in a demonic tone. The black ceiling turned blood red and black clouds started appearing in the disturbing sky. I was deaf except for hearing Ib and Garry's laugh constantly echoing in my ears. Ib's claws started scraping at my skin, making tears on my body.

"Stop!" I begged, "Please stop!"

"What's the matter Mary, scared?" Ib smirked. She turned her head down and stared right into my eyes. Her pupils were tiny, almost resembling a devil. I was so afraid. Ib was for sure going to kill me now. With my last ounce of courage, I grabbed on to Ib's sharp claw and bit hard.

"Ow, you little witch!" Ib screamed. And let go of my hair. I ran up her arm and to her neck. I started pulling on her hair trying to reach my rose, but she held it too high for me to reach. I kept pulling on her hair, ripping patches out while she was swiping at me. Through all the chaos Ib's grip loosened on my rose. I tried to grab at it but it still was too far for me to reach. Then all the sudden, she just let go. It felt like it happened in slow motion. I tried to reach it but I was too late. Again, the rose flew into the air, and fell ever so gently, only a few inches out of my reach. Even the rose was taunting me. I swear I saw a face on it laughing at me. And like everything that goes up, it eventually fell down, right into the lake water, landing with a small splash. The yellow rose floated on top of the water, but I was powerless as I saw each individual petal wilt.

"Hahahaha, let's play a game!" The demonic Garry laughed in a high-pitched voice.

The first petal fell off, I saw gashes appear on my body; my body was falling apart.

"Loves me." Garry sneered.

The second petal fell off, I too fell from Ib's shoulder and landed on the ground with a thud.

"Loves me not." Ib finished.

The third petal began to brown and slowly peel off. I was finding it hard to breathe. I found the last of my strength and crawled over to my knife. Thankfully I reached it and fingered the familiar blade in my hands.

"Loves me." Garry laughed at her, it was beginning to really annoy me.

The fourth petal turned brown. I could barely move, but I pushed myself to Garry. His red pupils focused on me but didn't even change the smile on his face. The fourth petal fell.

"Loves me not." He screeched.

The last petal was hanging loosely on the stem. I stared Garry straight in the eye, and stabbed him straight in the chest, making a long bloody gaush. Garry doubled over and grunted with pain, but he somehow kept the eerie smile on his face. I couldn't feel the pain anymore, I didn't know if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

"Loves me." I finished. My vision started to cloud and the last thing I remember was Ib rushing to Garry's side. My eyes blinked one last time, and failed to reopen.

The fifth petal fell from the yellow rose, leaving only a naked stem.

* * *

_**RED EYES**_

_**When your spirit suffers too much, you start to hallucinate. But the worst thing is,**_

_**You wouldn't even be conscious of that fact. **_

* * *

**Ib's POV**

"Don't worry Mary, I promise I won't hurt it. Just calm down and I'll give it back." I tried to calm her, but she was thrashing hard in my hand.

"No, I want it NOW!" Mary screamed like a little child.

"Mary…Please calm down." I tried to soothe her, but it seemed like her eyes were distant, not focusing on me.

"Ib, are you okay?" Garry asked worriedly.

"Yes," I answered, but Mary sure wasn't okay. She was shaking violently in my hand looking at me with pure fear in her eyes. I tried to pet her in an attempt to calm her down, but it seemed only to make things worse.

"Stop, please stop," Mary cringed to my touch.

"I'm sorry," I apologized not daring to touch her again.

"Maybe you should just give her rose back Ib," Garry offered.

"Yeah, you're probably right." I answered with a sigh.

I was about to give her rose back when all the sudden, Mary bit hard down on my hand. I gasped and let go. She hanged on to my hand and climbed to my shoulders. When she got there, she started pulling hard on my hair.

"Stop Mary!" I screamed, but she never even slowed her pace.

"Ib!" Garry yelled and stood up, but his energy was too depleted and immediately fell back onto the ground.

"Mary!" I screamed, "Please, my grip is loosening."

The doll completely ignored me and pulled harder, occasionally punching my neck.

Through the chaos, my hand lost its hold on the rose, and it flew away. It landed straight in the acidic water. I had no idea what was happening when I heard the small the splash. I stood there stunned until the second petal fell, that's when Mary fell from my shoulder.

"Oh no!" I muttered to myself before wading into the water to try to retrieve the water. The waves were not helping either as they pushed it farther and farther away from me. The third petal crumbled and fell. The water was almost to me knees and it hard to keep my own rose safe. Garry was intently watching me worrying about my rose. I waded just a little deeper but it was still just a little bit out of reach. The fourth petal began to brown. I fingers were near inches away from the flower.

From behind me, a scream filled the air. I turned around and saw Garry's body covered with a long red slash. It was terrifying. I momentarily forgot about Mary's rose and ran over to Garry's side.

"Oh, Garry please be okay." I fumbled with Garry's pockets until I found his blue rose. Its blue petals began to turn brown.

"Ib," Garry whispered hoarsely.

"Yes," Tears were beginning to form in my eyes.

"Please, don't cry…" he continued weakly, "don't be sad… I'll be okay."

"No you won't!" I massaged his shoulders, trying to keep him from sleeping.

"Listen Ib," Garry said seriously, "I will be with you forever. I will find a way."

"Promise?" I asked with a choked sob.

"Yes…"

Garry closed his eyes and fell asleep in my arms.

* * *

**A/N: Well surprised?**

**I feel bad killing Garry off so many times, but Garry is just everyone's favorite character to kill! (Sorry Garry) On tumblr, everyone would draw Garry as the more feminine one because he gets scared more easily but honestly, I actually think Garry is a lot braver than Ib. I mean think about it, Ib never had to face the doll room, and Garry was able to stay sane through the entire ordeal. Ib never saw the creepy dolls because she could only see them as bunny rabbits. I only say this because I think the scariest part of the game is when Garry goes by himself. I was never able to play that part by myself... **

**What do you guys think?**

**As always R&R~**

**~ApRiL**


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